Call On Qb Belongs To Rex, Not Idzik

One of the most obvious points of contention between the Jets’ present and future will be their quarterback decision.

But according to a report by Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News, (who may or may not have given the governor a harumph), the call on whether Mark Sanchez or Geno Smith starts will be made by coach Rex Ryan, not new General Manager John Idzik.

“I’m sure John will have his say,” a team source said. “But at the end of the day, Rex will consult his coaches and make the decision.”

Of course, there are deep organizational implications to either decision.

Ryan, who enters the season on thin ice, will obviously be more inclined to go with Sanchez. He’s seen the former first-rounder hold the wheel for a team that went to two AFC Championship Games. He knows what he can do. Smith’s a complete unknown, and may be wholly unprepared to start, even if Idzik were to lean on Ryan to make that decision.

Idzik said at the start of camp he’d have a “pretty big role” in deciding the quarterback, but ultimately, would cede that call to Ryan.

“John and I are really like shoulder-to-shoulder in decisions that we make,” Ryan said Monday. “We are side-by-side on every decision that goes into it-who plays, who’s making the team, all those type of things, . . . We are side-by-side with each other.”

Of course, playing Sanchez in the fourth quarter of a preseason game behind backup linemen and getting him hurt might complicate matters, since it’s unclear if his bruised shoulder would allow him to play.

But given the unstable state of the Jets, it might all be a moot point, and Idzik might simply be letting Ryan make one last important call, before what looks like an inevitable mess this season.